The Nation Newspaper

Tag: /United Nations Development Programme

  • UNDP partners Elumelu Foundation to empower 100,000 young entrepreneurs

    The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), the global development network of the United Nations, has partnered with the Tony Elumelu Foundation (TEF) to train, mentor and financially support 100,000 young entrepreneurs in Africa over 10 years.

    The objective is achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the African Union’s Agenda 2063.

    The TEF-UNDP Sahel Youth Entrepreneurship Programme, which is expected to mobilize support for businesses, aims to generate millions of new jobs and contribute at least $10 billion in new annual revenues across Africa.

    This was announced yesterday  at the 12th Extraordinary Session of the Assembly of the African Union (AU),in Niamey, Niger Republic where TEF Founder, Tony Elumelu and UNDP Regional Director for Africa, Ahunna Eziakonwa joined African Presidents at the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) Business Forum, where the agreement was signed.

    President Mahamadou Issoufou of Niger joined UNDP and TEF to launch the programme.

    Read Also: VPWM Business Summit: Women entrepreneurs set for exploits

    The partnership will target young Africans in under-served communities, starting with the Sahel, given the region’s opportunity as the youngest population in the world with 194 million people under 25 years of age (64.5% of the total population).

    The TEF-UNDP Sahel Youth Entrepreneurship Programme will be implemented through TEF’s flagship Entrepreneurship Programme, which has already benefited 7,520 local entrepreneurs across 54 African countries in just five years of existence. Similarly, the programme builds on UNDP’s YouthConnekt initiative.

    The aim is to increase job creation through dynamic entrepreneurship and create sustainable economic growth that anchors the development of communities and states.

    Speaking on the partnership, Ms. Ahunna Eziakonwa, Assistant Secretary-General and UNDP Regional Director for Africa stated described the Sahel as a land of many opportunities, and said that investing in the youth is a pre-condition to stabilizing the region.

    The CEO of the Tony Elumelu Foundation, Ifeyinwa Ugochukwu said the  partnership with UNDP will directly assist entrepreneurial success in a number of fragile areas.

  • Lessons from Osun gubernatorial election

    Relying on the massive infrastructure development it had recorded in terms of roads, urban renewal and mega schools, and considering that the incumbent Governor, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola, is a grassroots mobiliser, it was expected that his party, the All Progressives Congress, should have an easy outing during the recently concluded gubernatorial election in Osun State notwithstanding the aggrieved defectors from the party on account of the outcome of the direct primary considered free and fair.

    In addition to massive infrastructure development, Ogbeni Aregbesola administration had surpassed many in the country in delivering unique, visionary, pioneering milestone Social Protection Programmes and various pro-poor people initiatives in consonance with his Six-Point Integral Action Plan that have revamped the economy and yielded many fruits. For instance, under Rauf’s watch, Osun emerged as the state with lowest poverty incidence in Nigeria by the latest United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) reports.

    This fact is confirmed by the National Bureau of Statistics. Between 2010 when Aregbesola reclaimed his mandate from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and 2017, Osun poverty index has dropped from 37.5 percent to 10.9 percent.

    This year, it is the state with the lowest unemployment rate of 6.7 percent. Rauf Aregbesola’s government has lifted over 700,000 people out of poverty. So, what went wrong with a high-flying party with a large-looming incumbent that went confidently into the 22 September 2018 Gubernatorial Election?

    Firstly, confidently riding on its stated track record among other considerations, the APC did everything, pre-election, to guarantee a level playground for every political party to ensure free, fair and credible election not mindful of parties with nothing to offer but are grandmasters of process corruption and manipulations.

    Secondly, whereas all is well with granting every political party access to erect billboards, posting and pasting campaign materials at every nook and cranny of the state, giving unfiltered access to the state broadcasting media outfit and the use of big screens at major junctions in the state capital for political parties’ sponsored campaigns and adverts, the ruling party should have realised that it had to stand guard, vigilantly and firmly, in the aftermath of the massive monetisation of the Ekiti elections, with vote buying carried to a new height.

    Even in the face of visible evidences and the clarion call of the PDP  “dibo ko sebe, dibo ko rale” “vote and cook stew, vote and buy land”  the APC simply dismissed the emergent threat and continued to confidently bank on its manifest achievements.

    It is instructive to note that while other major political parties  APC, ADP and SDP were vigorously campaigning, attending debates to present and canvass their programmes and manifestoes to seek for votes from the electorate, PDP did not.

    It, instead, divided the state into nine zones with formidable anchors to source for electorate with valid voters’ cards and their details such as ward, polling units and telephone numbers. The work was made easier by Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) which gave out voters list to all political parties before the election. How the electorates were reached and settled has already been reported.

    Lessons for future elections

    The clear lessons of the election must be learnt by all as the general elections approach early next year. For one, the pervading material poverty of the majority population, among who are the electorate, have made good governance a secondary consideration in election matters.

    Parties whose traditional stock-in-trade was ballot snatching and writing bogus results, have moved on with the ICT age and advancing template of the electoral guideline, and scientific vote buying and corrupt inducement of voters, right from party primaries.

    Parties that are reliant on following through the rules while banking on integrity and achievements are all in patent trouble with those that have nothing to offer but are masters of manipulations.

    The sad reality is that however clinical the procedure is, once there is pervading poverty of the majority and a party enamoured to corruption and mindless of the rules, the people will never be able to conscientiously decide the outcome of election, especially in favour of good governance, democratic advancement and social progress.

    • Ademola wrote from Alekuwodo, Osogbo.

  • FG commences review of National environmental sanitation policy

    The Federal Government says it has commenced the review of the National Environmental Sanitation Policy to improve and promote sound environmental sanitation practices in the country.

    The Permanent Secretary, Federal Ministry of Environment, Mr Leon Aliboh, said this on Thursday at the National Critique Workshop on the Review and Update of the National Environmental Sanitation Policy, Guidelines and Action Plan in Abuja.

    The News Agency of Nigeria reports that the policy was developed and launched by President Olusegun Obasanjo in 2005.

    Aliboh, who was represented by the Director of Pollution Control and Environmental Health, Mr Charles Ikias, added that the ministry, in collaboration with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) developed the policy and its supporting documents.

    “The policy document is now 13 years old and due for review. No wonder we are gathered here today to critique and update it for validation,’’ the permanent secretary said.

    Read Also: Ajasin varsity starts compulsory environmental sanitation

    He said that the policy adopted a sectoral approach to addressing the sanitation challenges in the country.

    “This policy identifies various settings such as homes, schools, markets, abattoirs and addresses the then sanitation needs of these sectors.

    “The needs include excreta disposal, solid waste management, pest and vector control, food sanitation and hygiene education in a holistic manner.

    “The National Action Plan provides the operational framework for implementation.

    “It enunciates strategies, programs and time bound activities and also assigns roles and responsibilities to the different tiers of government and other relevant stakeholders.’’

    According to him, the policy, due to multi-sectoral relevance and multi-disciplinary approach to sanitation, also enunciates an institutional arrangement comprising all tiers of government and public agencies for effective implementation.

    “The advent of new sanitation technologies, innovations, emerging sanitation issues and challenges in the implementation of the document called for the review and update of the policy documents.

    He said the review became necessary to meet present needs and challenges.

    Aliboh said that with an effective and efficient framework to tackle the myriad of environmental sanitation challenges, sustainable development goals would be greatly achieved.

    The Director, Abuja Environmental Protection Board (AEPB), Baba Shehu-Lawan, urged relevant stakeholders to implement the policy after its formulation and review.

    Shehu-Lawan, who was represented by the Deputy Director of Environmental Health Service, Mr Ajueyitsi Simeon, called for all hands to be on deck to ensure implementation of the policy.

    “It has been generally observed that the crucial stage after policy formulation/review is its implementation. Our policies are bedeviled with somersaults,’’ the director said.

  • UNDP to support Niger communities in tree planting

    Following the continued felling of valuable trees, the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP)  has promised to support NGOs and communities on tree planting.

    According to the Niger state UNDP Coordinator, Alhaji Baba Wachiko, planting of trees is the most valuable activity to protect the environment which is gradually experiencing a depleting event of trees.

    Speaking during a Seedling Give Away programme by the Christian Rural and Urban Development Association of Nigeria (CRUDAN) in Kampala, Bosso local government area of Niger state, Wachiko urged communities to protect their environment by avoiding continuous tree felling without replanting new ones.

    “If you protect the environment, you will protect your life and you can only protect it by avoiding tree felling. Planting of trees is one of the most valuable things to protect the community and environment even though people have continued indiscriminate felling of trees.”

    He then urged the communities to nurture the seedlings they were given, “you have to guard and nurture the seedlings jealously. It is not planting that matters but the nurturing. If you nurture it well, your community will benefit enormously from it. ”

    Read Also: UNDP plants 1000 trees in schools

    Wachiko then called on government and other NGOs to work towards protecting the environment, “we are ready to support any community or NGO on this.”

    The state Coordinator of CRUDAN, David Yisa said that the decision of planting the trees was taken because of the need to protect the environment which is currently experiencing depletion of trees, “the project is meant to help communities plant trees deliberately.”

    He said that 200 seedlings of Leuceana Leucocephala which in Hausa is known as Lukina waa given to the community.

    According to him, the trees when it is grown would increase forest resources, livestock feed and industrial use to create income for poor households.

     

     

     

  • Boosting cassava production

    The Agricultural Credit Corporation of Oyo State(ACCOS) and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) are set to roll out initiatives to support cassava farmers to boost production. DANIEL ESSIET reports.

    Iseyin, Oyo State is a rural community life where people farm and look after their livestock to earn a living.

    Young unemployed graduates have moved to the community to farm. To them, Iseyin offers an alternative to unemployment.

    That is why the  Chief Executive Officer of Eagleson and Nito Concepts, Ms. Nike Tinubu, has come in to help.She is part of those boosting cassava production. A successful cassava producer, she has sited her cassava flour processing plant in Iseyin, thereby creating jobs.

    She has built her success on an- inclusive business model that places smallholder farmers at the centre of her operations.

    Having started at Lagos State Agriculture Youth Empowerment Scheme, popularly known as “Agric-YES” Settlement  at Arago Poka Street, Agric, Epe, Lagos, she  later moved to Aba-Ola Iseyin Local Government Area, Oyo State to acquire  1000  acres for cultivation of  starchy root, which has allowed her to expand source of raw materials. Initially, she started working with few farmers, engaging them to cultivate cassava on some parts of her 1000-acre farm.

    Through her experience in the cassava sector, she observed that when farmers transported their cassava over very long distance, the starch content could drop from 17 to five  per cent and tubers would often rot. The proximity of the factory to the farmers ensures that good quality, mature cassava tubers with high starch content are processed within 24 hours, avoiding unnecessary losses.

    The steady supply generated by these local farmers has allowed the company to maintain a relatively stable price throughout the year to undercut international pricing. She explained that cassava also has a high water content and starts to degrade rapidly after harvesting. It has to be processed within 48 hours of being lifted.

    With many production areas riddled with logistical issues, including bad roads, she  noted  that centralised processing is a viable option. She had to establish her processing factory with the farm area to enable her process it there after harvest.

    A life time spent on cassava production, has made Ms Tinubu an ardent advocate for people- focused solutions to agricultural problems.

    She has built a business relationship with smallholder farmers in the farming community in Iseyin, and further enhance women’s roles in agriculture across the cassava value chains. As markets and demand for agricultural produce change, she   provides women with opportunities to step out of roles as laborers and subsistence farmers.

    However, governments have begun to realise the huge potential for the plant as a driver of rural development. The market for cassava’s commercial and industrial use has started to grow. Its root starch is now in demand from food and beverage companies for bread and beer production. It can also be used in plywood and pharmaceuticals, as well as feedstock for the production of ethanol biofuel.

    To  boost  national cassava volume, Ms Tinubu is working Agricultural Credit Corporation of Oyo State(ACCOS) to find practical ways to make farming work for the people.

    She had been experimenting with marketing inside and outside the state, but with the outgrower scheme organised by ACCOS. She has provided a standard market for micro cassava farmers producing cassava on her farm to support her high quality cassava flour factory within the area.

    The corporation collaborated with Ms Tinubu to support the micro producers with technical assistance, production plans, provision of stems, among others.

    ACCOS funds 200 acres of cassava plantation on her farm.

    Ms Tinubu said increased cultivation of cassava had boosted its processing into flour and reduced the challenge of sourcing for raw materials.

    She said more farmers were now cultivating cassava tubers because of availability of ready markets.

    Mrs Tinubu said cassava processing into flour was becoming easier because of exposure and support from the government on cassava flour processing.

    The  project enables her organisation in partnership  with ACCOS to  provide employment for local youth by creating sales, mechanic and support staff jobs, which has the added benefit of slowing migration from Oyo State’s key agricultural production areas.

    She explained that  youths migrate for employment daily due a lack of employment opportunity and capital constraints in their own communities, a phenomena that directly contributes to agricultural yield loss.

    She believes that the role of both rural and urban spaces for rebuilding food systems is ever more relevant.

    Success for entrepreneurs  such as Ms Tinubu  allows farming households to access innovative, scale-appropriate technology, increase employment for youth and boost cropping system productivity, all of which are needed to sufficiently and sustainably increase food production for future generations.

    The government is spending  money trying to improve production and create a food supply chain around cassava.

    The Commissioner for Agriculture, Natural Resources and Rural Development, Oyewole Oyewumi   said the government would empower cassava producers through the state’s funded Anchor Borrower’s programme introduced by ACCOS.

    He explained that ACCOS is saddled with financing peasant farmers in the state through her soft loan programme but with the global trend of agricultural financing in line with government diversification agenda, the agency is restructured towards financing farming under the “Home grown anchor borrowers’ scheme” to showcase agriculture as a business rather than hobby.

    In partnership with Eagleson and Nito Concepts, Oyewumi  explained that the government is funding of 200 acres of cassava plantation.

    Oyewumi said the project was designed to support the farmers to increase their yield, enhance sustainable profit and boost food security in the state.

    An Agribusiness Specialist with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), Dr Nelson Abila, said his organisation was working with high quality cassava  producers, such as Ms Tinubu to provide them with technical support to earn higher income.

    According to him, the organisation trains farmers to maximise productivity and meet stringent quality requirements.

    By improving their farming and business practices, he said the farmers would be creating a more prosperous future for their families and oft-marginalised community.

    The other goal, he explained,  is to  create a more efficient and profitable processing center by investing in upgraded equipment and ensuring quality control.

    Abila said UNDP is supporting the government objectives of making agriculture and food processing more productive and competitive, and increasing private sector participation and investment in agribusiness.

    He said UNDP is committed to the revival of Nigeria’s agricultural industry and will continue to improve the agricultural enterprise model so that it supports the government’s policy to promote food security.

    According to him, the organisation’s value chain development approach include supporting farmers and agro entrepreneurs to improve their productivity and increase their yields, and address challenges of access to finance and upscaling processing operations.

  • Creating opportunities for IDPs through agric

    United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) Nigeria and British-American Tobacco Foundation are creating business and employment opportunities for internally displaced persons (IDPs) in the Northeast through agriculture, writes DANIEL ESSIET.

    Building on its work in meeting early-recovery needs of conflict-affected populations in the Northeast, the United Nation Development Programme (UNDP) Nigeria  has supported farmers with inputs to help them resgain their lost livelihoods.

    Over 600 farmers were supported with seeds, fertiliser and insecticide in Ngwom community in Mafa Local Government Area in Borno State.

    The intervention was part of UNDP Nigeria’s integrated community stabilisation package which  used Ngwom as its pilot scheme.

    The government of Japan is supporting the project, which has been providing agricultural inputs for rainy season farming, irrigation, livestock farming and fishery to about 1,700 farmers in Borno, Adamawa, and Yobe states.

    In Adamawa, more than 200 farmers received inputs. Most of the beneficiaries are Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) from Borno State while others are from host communities.

    The private sector has keyed into the project.

    One of such organisations is British-American Tobacco Nigeria (BATN) Foundation that has unfolded a rural-friendly programme for IDPs to access agriculture support services and entrepreneurship.

    Hajia Halima Ahamda is a beneficiary. A widow with three children from Tarila District of Yola South Local Government Area of Adamawa State, she and her kinsmen and women migrated to Yola in 2015, after being displaced by the Boko Haram insurgency.

    Mrs Ahamda is a peasant farmer, who cultivated crops and kept livestock before the attack.

    Last year, BATN Foundation, in collaboration with Adamawa State FADAMA III AF, supported her and 999 IDPs through its livelihood support project.

    She was trained in livestock best practices, and given one male and three female goats.

    One year after, she is celebrating her success because the female goats have produced seven kids, with others pregnant.

    Mrs Ahamda said she would sell the animals and use the money to solve her domestic needs, such as paying her children’s school fees and expanding her agriculture enterprise.

    Mrs Ahamda is not the only one  BATN Foundation has touched. Mallam Jubril Shuaibu is another beneficiary. A native of Ganana Tinja Village in Fika Local Government Area of Yobe State, in 2014, he was among those displaced by the Boko Haram crisis.

    His property was destroyed. Without any means of livelihood, he and his family were forced to stay at IDPs camp at Damaturu.

    BATN Foundation collaborated with the International Food and Agriculture Development Climate Adaptation and Agribusiness Support Programme (IFAD-CASP) Yobe State office, last year, to implement a livelihood support project.

    Shuaibu received training and agriculture inputs to set up a farm, including four bags of 50kg fertiliser, 50 kg rice seed, two litres of herbicides and technical support.

    At the end of the season last December, he harvested 1.9 tonnes of rice from his 0.45-hectare farm.

    Proceeds from the produce sale, he said, were used to rebuild his burnt house, and feed his family.

    Speaking in Lagos, BATN Chairman Chief Kola Jamodu said the foundation had voted N700 million to boost agriculture. The amount is to be spent over a five-year period, under its Nigeria’s Country plan. So far, the foundation has spent N1.5 billion on agricbusiness.

    He said the project is targeting 62,000 rural farmers and five million people.

    Jamodu said the foundation would empower small farm holders to ensure food security in the country.

    He explained that BATN Foundation had taken intervention with small holding farmers as a serious business. This  is because the it sees them as a means of alleviating poverty on a large scale.

    Farmers, according to him, are offered quality seeds, fertiliser, agrochemicals, and  free training.

    Jamodu said the foundation had signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Nigeria Meteorological Agency (NiMET) for the establishment of a collaboration to provide weather information to farmers.

    According to him, the objective of the deal is for NiMET to provide weather information, including the likely period of dry spell and locations of likely flash flood occurrences to farmers, who depend on rain-fed agriculture.

    British American Tobacco Managing Director, Chris McAlister said   in this modern agriculture, many farmers were still struggling with the pre-requisite to move from small scale to large scale farming and that this has threaten their ability to rise out of poverty.

    He reiterated that his organisa-tion would continue to provide funding and other assistance to ensure that they were able to support agricultural enterprises and improve the livelihood of those living in the rural areas, because they accounts for nearly 73.2 per cent of less privileged households in Nigeria.

    BATN Foundation Executive Director Abimbola Okoya said the foundation had established model farms across the country as part of its agriculture technology transfer to boost entrepreneurship.

    The model farms, with the ability to generate income, are part of the solution to taming the exodus of the youth to urban areas with their high income turnover expected to attract the youth into agribusiness.

  • Economic Plan: UN commends FG

    Economic Plan: UN commends FG

    The United Nations on Tuesday commended the Federal Government for its Economic Recovery and Growth Plan (ERGP) launched recently in Abuja.

    United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) Resident Representative in Nigeria, Mr Edward Kallon, made the commendation in Abuja on Tuesday at the launch of UNDP 2016 Human Development Report (HDR).

    Kallon expressed optimism that Nigeria had what was needed to surmount her challenges and pledged the support of the world body in this regard.

    He said that plans with its several medium-term policies and programmes were capable of keeping Nigeria on a positive development trajectory.

    According to him, this is because the ERGP focuses on restoring growth, investing in people and building a globally competitive economy.

    The UNDP boss also expressed satisfaction on the feat recorded by Nigeria in the Human Development Index (HDI) where it garnered 13.1 percent increase between 2005 and 2015.

    He called for tougher policies to enable the country to sustain gains made in human development.

    Kallon said that insecurity and the drop in prices of export commodities which were major earners in sub-Saharan Africa were fast eroding the gains.

    He said that Nigeria was faced with two major problems of economic recession and humanitarian crisis.

    “We are all aware of the humanitarian crisis in the North-East of the country and the looming famine in that region although efforts by humanitarian development actors, under the leadership of government, have yielded significant results.

    “Many challenges remain as an estimated 8.5 million people in that region are in urgent need of humanitarian assistance.

    “And, some 50,000 children are at ‘IPC level 5’ of food insecurity. The need for action, especially for the children, couldn’t be more urgent,” he said.

    The envoy advised the government to utilise the opportunity provided by the launch of the UN report to address the twin problems of economic recession and humanitarian crisis in the country.

    According to him, the nation should utilise the opportunity provided by the report to promote policy dialogue at national and sub-national levels.

    He called on Nigeria to as a matter of urgency find a lasting solution to the challenges in order to bring enduring development in the country.

    “The report shows that between 2005 and 2015, Nigeria’s HDI increased from 0.466 to 0.527, a 13.1 percent increase.

    “This is encouraging, but given the humanitarian challenges already alluded to, and economic recession witnessed in 2016, there is urgent need to design policies and programmes to ensure that upward trend in human development is not reversed.”

  • UN to help Nigeria recover stolen funds

    UN to help Nigeria recover stolen funds

    United Nations (UN) has vowed to continue to work in partnership with the National Assembly, Presidential Advisory Committee on Corruption and Civil society leaders among others in the process of recovering stolen public funds and enhance transparency.

    The Newly appointed United Nations Development Programme, (UNDP), Resident Representative, Ms. Fatima Samoura revealed this yesterday in Abuja at a media breakfast meeting.

    She said within the year: “We shall support the civil society organizations with grants, towards improving the quality of their engagement in the anti-corruption process in the country and in enhancing the transparency of public institutions. This would enhance the success of the on-going war against corruption, increase the rate of recovery of stolen public resources and enhance transparency.”

    Fighting corruption, Ms. Samoura said requires strong government wiliness adding that corruption has a lot to do with weak institutions.

    Speaking on how to also ensure peace in the country especially in the northern part with the Boko Haram insurgence, she said the UN and its agencies in partnership with the Federal Government and the Northern Governors are currently reviewing and finalizing a Recovery and Peace-Building Assessment (RPBA) report on the situation in the region.

    Her words: “We will continue working closely with civil society leaders in partnering with the Presidential Advisory Committee on Corruption and in working closely with Anti-Corruption Agencies towards entrenching a culture of integrity in Nigeria.  We will continue engaging with and supporting the National Assembly and other stakeholders because we believe the fight against corruption requires the involvement of everyone.

    “Fighting corruption requires strong government wiliness. And I know that UN administration has taken very strong step in fighting corruption. The second problem is the wiliness to track all the funds that has been stolen, hence a constant dialogue with those countries. Now we are living in a global world.

    “I am sure you are aware of the moneys that have been recovered from Switzerland and other countries that need to be reinvested in the development programme. Corruption has very much to do with weak institutions. If we can work together in not only making the fight a priority at all level of the state including the Local Government Areas (LGAs), and making sure that every money that leaves the country is accounted for we will make a big difference.

    “And I would say that Nigeria with its booming economy has really been penalized in terms of addressing inequalities because of corruption and I know that this nation has made it imperative to consolidate the gain after the democratic elections. We are all responsible one way or the other of how our country’s institution is governed. It is up to us also to make sure that we fight corruption and UNDP will give support.

    “This remains a critical area for us at UNDP and the UN at large. We will continue to provide support to the government in responding to emerging challenges; – we are redoubling our efforts and investing more in promoting peace because, as the former Secretary-General Kofi Annan once said, “there can be no development without peace, no peace without development, and none of these without respect for human rights.”

    We have already commenced the implementation of two projects which contributes to structural conflict prevention in the North East. These are on ‘Livelihood Support and Social Cohesion’ and the ‘De-Radicalization, Counter-Terrorism and Migration’ Projects.

    “The UN efforts are directed at supporting and promoting peace building, conflict prevention and social cohesion. All this is packaged in the framework of a National Infrastructure for Peace in Nigeria. We want to use this framework to harness efforts at Federal, State, and Local Government areas, bringing together the relevant stakeholders. We will keep providing support towards enhancing our early warning and response mechanisms and programmes, and expand channels for dialogue aimed at peaceful co-existence.

    “The UN, through its agencies (particularly the UNDP, the UN Women), in partnership with the Institute for Peace and Conflict Resolution (formerly of the Presidency and now hosted by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs) and other development partners, have been working in this area and a draft National Peace Policy was produced. It is my wish that this policy will be approved by the relevant bodies so that we can rally support its implementation. I will like to emphasize the need for coordination amongst the various institutions and partners involved in one aspect of peace building and human security in order to maximize efforts and minimize duplication of resources.

    “The UN, EU and WB in partnership with the Federal Government and the North-East State Governments (Governors) are currently reviewing and finalizing a Recovery and Peace-Building Assessment (RPBA) report on the situation in the region. It is my wish that this joint exercise will continue to cement our partnerships and complementarily in accompanying Nigeria on its path to recovery, peace and development.”

    Ms. Fatima Samoura is also the UN Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator.

     

  • How to grow agric at local level, by don

    A consultant on Fadama, the Federal Government/United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) Community-based Action Programme, Prof. Abel Babalola Ogunwale, has said agricultural development at the rural level is poorly-managed.

    Ogunwale spoke with reporters yesterday in Ogbomoso, Oyo State. He said people’s participation in agricultural extension activities must be encouraged.

    Ogunwale identified other problems of agricultural development as poor and erratic funding, ineffective extension supervision, much emphasis on export crops and neglect of food crops.

    He said: “The consequence is that Nigeria’s huge economic potential, evidenced in the vast unexploited productive capacities, is held down by institutional and infrastructural rigidities, as well as the high capital associated with many of these programmes.

    Ogunwale said: “The over N1.1 trillion being spent on the importation of wheat, rice, fish and sugar yearly could have been better invested in local food production.

    “A total of $47,930 was spent on animal fats and oils for five years.

    These amounts; $4,521,840; $2,802,800; $1,083,176,900; $1,623,520 and $2,182,525 were spent on maize grain, maize flour, rice, vegetable fats and oils and wheat importation between 2000 and 2005. What a shameful development.”